Though more than 90% of computers in the U.S. have some form of spyware implanted in them, most users don’t know how to identify or combat the online menace, according to a survey from the Internet Education Foundation and Dell.
The survey, conducted by Ipsos-Public Affairs between Sept. 17-19, polled 742 Internet users nationwide.
Spyware refers to programs that can be unknowingly downloaded onto consumers’ computers and can collect personal information, change users’ homepages, display unwanted ads or slow computer system performance.
Dell warned that high-speed Internet users are at greater risk for spyware due to the lack of consumer usage of built-in firewalls, the speed at which spyware files can download and because of the “always on” nature of broadband.
The poll was conducted as part a public awareness campaign sponsored by IEF and Dell.
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